Meet Wicker Park Detail's new Sergeant: William Betancourt

When William "Will" Betancourt joined the Chicago Police Department 19 years ago, he was assigned to District 14 (Shakespeare). He left and came back a couple of times and is now back to head one of the area's well known teams…the Wicker Park Detail. 

Originally created to focus on the bar scene along Milwaukee Ave. from Division St. north, the Wicker Park Detail also covers other parts of the District, including the Bloomingdale Trail on The 606. 

Betancourt's previous assignments have him well prepared for the job. After a recent Chicago Alternative Policing Strategies (CAPS) meeting during which activities of some gang members were discussed, Betencourt said, "I dealt with these guys when they were little. Now they are grown and around because their mom and dad or grandparents own the house where they live." 

Asked about The 606, he said, "The Trail is hard to support because there are no gates and no hours posted." His 7-person team has two officers on bikes and 5 in cars. "We are off on Sunday and Monday so the officers patrolling on those days are assigned from other watches." 

Betancourt has worked in Austin and Grand and Central as well as with a Federal gun team. He is taking on the position that Sergeant Joseph Giambrone called his "dream job." Giambrone was sworn in as Lieutenant earlier this month is assigned to the 7th District.

"Betancourt is an extremely competent Sergeant! As a former tactical and gang supervisor, he brings a lot to the table," commented Giambrone.